The proliferation of online selling through various web auction and classified sites has led to rapid growth in online commerce. This growth however, while initially targeted at the individual user, has come primarily through the larger more experienced user or the Business to Consumer (B2C) relationship. Despite the notion that the internet has increased online selling (which it has, via B2C market growth), the individual consumer does not, on average, sell online. Reasons for this are many however the primary reasons are the result of ever increasing complexity and disaggregation of the online selling market.
Online selling requires deep understanding of a number of elements as well as the online marketplaces. Knowledge of an individual's product including but not limited to: name, model number, year of manufacture, weight, size, applications, accessories, compatibility, color, warranty, etc., are essential to help the user describe their product to a potential buyer. Further, the user must understand the different marketplaces that exist as well as their individual selling restrictions: auction, fixed price, classified, local, regional, national, shipping, payment and other parameters all differ greatly across platforms and across product categories.
Successful online selling comes from a deep understanding of the above mentioned parameters as well as the time and expertise to list, track and manage products across multiple selling marketplaces.
Beyond listing, users must currently rely on the marketplaces they choose to acquire potential online buyers and direct those buyers to their listing. In this case, the average internet user is competing against large professional entities with skilled divisions devoted towards buyer acquisition. Without the appropriate tools to leverage their existing network of potential buyers, the individual seller is at a disadvantage in an inefficient yet competitive marketplace.
Additionally, knowledge about the performance of one's online selling is imperative to the success of future sales as well as the comfort that one feels with the selling process. Existing tools to support this process exist only for the established, Professional seller.
Therefore there is a need for a service that provides information to the average user regarding the options, pathways, and potential outcomes of online selling. Further, in order to enable successful online selling, the service would ideally aggregate information from multiple sources across the Internet and provide the user with direction, tools, and the necessary feedback to manage their online selling.